Haven (5 page)

‘He hasn’t got away.’ Purkiss took out his phone. ‘He told me you’d given him a phone in the beginning, but that the Sicilians confiscated it so they could listen to any secret calls you might make to him.’ He looked at her expectantly. ‘So what’s the number?’

Cass gazed at him, then understood and glanced away. ‘I know what you’re thinking, but –’

‘We have to do it this way.’

Unusually for her, she didn’t meet his eyes as she recited the number. Purkiss keyed it in.

On the fourth ring it was answered in silence. Without pause Purkiss said in Italian, ‘Motruk? It’s Purkiss. Cass is here too. Listen, we can still salvage this. Stay with them and when you can, get message to us where you are. If it’s Sicily, we’ll liaise with the local police to make a swoop but leave you unhurt. You have my word.’

He waited, heard an intake of breath at the other end. He said, ‘Motruk?’ Then he muttered, off to one side, ‘Damn it. Someone else has his phone,’ and killed the call.

Like a hanging judge, signing the final piece of paper.

Purkiss began to walk away up the grassy slope towards where his car was parked.

Cass called: ‘Where are you going?’

‘Home,’ said Purkiss.

THE END

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Ratcatcher
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Delivering Caliban
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Jokerman
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Tim Stevens

John Purkiss series

Ratcatcher

Delivering Caliban

Jokerman

Haven (short story)

John Purkiss Box Set Volume 1 (Ratcatcher, Delivering Caliban, Jokerman)

Spiked (short story, exclusive to mailing list subscribers)

Tundra (coming in 2014)

Martin Calvary series

Severance Kill

Annihilation Myths (coming in 2014)

Shorter stories and novellas

Reunion

Snout

As James Rush

Omega Dog

Table of Contents

Copyright

ONE

TWO

THREE

FOUR

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